F1, MotoGP cancel Middle East races amid Iran war

F1 confirmed the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix on April 12 and 19 are canceled, with no replacement races planned this season.skysports
MotoGP separately postponed its Qatar Grand Prix from April to Nov. 8, citing the same regional security concerns, according to its official announcement.motogp
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali called it “the right” decision; later-season races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi are still expected to proceed.espn

Formula 1 and MotoGP Cancel Middle East Races Amid Regional Conflict

Formula 1 and MotoGP have both pulled races from the Middle East as the war between Iran and a US-Israeli coalition continues to destabilize the Gulf region, marking the widest disruption to international motorsport calendars in years.

F1 confirmed on Saturday, ahead of Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, that the Bahrain Grand Prix scheduled for April 12 and the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on April 19 will not take place. The cancellations reduce the 2026 season from 24 to 22 races and open a five-week gap between the Japanese Grand Prix on March 29 and the Miami Grand Prix on May 3. Separately, MotoGP announced on Sunday that the Qatar Grand Prix, originally set for April 10–12 at Lusail International Circuit, has been rescheduled to November 8.skysports

F1 Drops Two April Rounds

The decision had been building since the conflict erupted on February 28, with Iranian retaliatory strikes hitting locations in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, including the Bahraini capital of Manama, where F1 personnel typically stay during race weekends. A freight shipping deadline of March 20 for transporting cars and equipment to the Gulf made the timeline untenable.heavy

“While this was a difficult decision to take, it is unfortunately the right one at this stage considering the current situation in the Middle East,” F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said in a statement. FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem added that “the FIA will always place the safety and wellbeing of our community and colleagues first”.formula1

Several alternative European venues were considered, but logistical challenges ruled out April replacements. Rounds for Formula 2, Formula 3, and F1 Academy that had been paired with the Bahrain and Saudi events were also scrapped. F1 remains hopeful that later-season races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will proceed as planned.espn

MotoGP Moves Qatar to November

MotoGP’s postponement of the Qatar Grand Prix follows the same security calculus. The governing body said the decision was made “in close coordination with the FIM, the Promoter and the local authorities in Qatar”. The shift pushes the Portuguese Grand Prix at Portimão to November 22 and moves the season finale in Valencia to November 29.thenewsmill

MotoGP CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta said the priority was “the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in MotoGP”. Abdulrahman bin Abdullatif Al Mannai, president of the Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation, said the organization “respects and supports” the rescheduling.motogp

Wider Impact on Motorsport

The cancellations extend beyond F1 and MotoGP. The FIA World Endurance Championship has also halted races in the region. Travel disruptions had already complicated the start of the F1 season, with team members forced to reroute flights to the Australian Grand Prix after Middle Eastern airspace closures. With no resolution to the conflict in sight, the motorsport industry faces continued uncertainty over its remaining Gulf-hosted events later this year.evrimagaci